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Weekend Forum Answers, Act III

Here’s the next installment of answers as 2007 winds down. Hail Caesar!
Q.) Part of the reason USC’s season feels like a complete disappointment is due to the super high expectations of the pre-season rankings . . . Would you support a move by the BSC to have the polls used in the BCS formula not taken until the after the second or third week of the season – if this were the case for this season, I bet SC would not have been #1 in the middle of September or October Polls, would have had less attention, and instead of being seen as falling from grace, could have been seen as rising to the top with a strong finish

A.) The BCS already uses the Harris Poll which does not start until mid-October. The problem is not those polls because all the preseason magazines also rank teams and that also raises expectations. But so does returning 10 defensive starters, your QB, TB, and a 2-time All-American OT.

Q.) What is the opinion around the program regarding the Tings? Are they welcome to attend practices and games? By the way, did they ever end up going to medical school? I know there was controversy that they would end up being denied admission due to their situation.

A.) The Tings seemed to disappear after the steroid controversy. There was talk they left USC and returned to the Bay Area but I’ve never seen them around since last year.

Q.) Is there any talk about bringing back the male yell leaders

A.) Getting rid of the yell leaders was an arbitrary move by the IM-Rec dept. when they formed that strange spirit squad last year that seems to have no real defined role.

Q.) Now that we are on the eve of JD Booty’s final game as a Trojan, what is your explanation as to why he never lived up to the hype that he came to USC with and what followed him for his first three years on campus? Do you think that after he had back surgery, he simply was not as good as he was prior to the operation? Did he become more hesitant after the operation and did it cause restrictions in his on field actions? Would he have been better if he never had back problems that didn’t require surgery?

A.) I don’t really think the back surgery was an issue. First off, Booty’s hype was way too much and part of that came from graduating from high school a year early. In retrospect, I think it clearly was a mistake. Actually I thought it was at the time too. There’s really no rush. I think the bigger issue was why he didn’t seem to improve this season. The Idaho and Washington (pre-broken finger) were warning signs. Part of it was not having Steve Smith and Dwyane Jarrett, but the high-sailing passes were not because of new receivers.

Q.) Will David Ausberry be moved to TE?

A.) Right now there are no plans to move Ausberry. With Blake Ayles, Rhett Ellison and Anthony McCoy at tight end, they will be given the first crack at the spot.

Q.) Do I think Pete Carroll has USC fired up for Illinois?

A.) Yes but it’s also true the Trojans were not fired up for bowl activities. However, they do not want to lose the Rose Bowl.

Q.) Scott, I hear your negotiating for a weekly show on TrojanTV, how’s that going?

A.) Negotiations are going smoothly. I will paid by the viewer and receive 5 cents for every viewer after the first 200, which is the average audience for the highly watched channel.

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